Page 368 pacify them, by promising (besides other Rewards) a Mina apiece to every Man, as soon as he came to Babylon: Upon which, being thus encourag'd, and having their Expectations rais'd high, they at length consented. Hereupon, Cyrus pass'd his Army over Euphrates, and went forward without making any Halt; and as soon as he came to the Borders of Babylon he gave leave to his Army to refresh themselves.
Artaxerxes the King, had some time before notice given him by Pharnabazus, of the secret Preparations of Cyrus against him, but now having certain Intelligence of his March, he call'd all his Forces together from every place to Ecbatana in Media; and with what Force he then had march'd against Cyrus, not being willing to stay for the Aids from India and other Nations, who he perceiv'd would be too long in coming up to him by reason of the great Distances of the several Places from whence they came. His Army (as Ephorus relates) amounted to no less then Four hundred thousand Horse and Foot.
When he came within the Borders of Babylon, he Encamp'd at Euphrates, purposing there to leave his heavy Baggage: For he knew the Enemy was not far off, and therefore had just Cause to fear their desperate and daring Attempt: He drew therefore a Trench Threescore Foot in breadth and Ten in depth, and Barricaded it with Carts and Carriages as with a Wall; here he left his Baggage and those that were Sick and Weak with but a slender Guard, but he himself with a swift March made towards the Enemy who were then near at hand.
When Cyrus saw the King's Army advancing, he forthwith commanded all his Army to their Arms. The Lacedaemonians and some Mercenaries were in the Right Wing, stretch'd out to the River Euphrates, under the Command of Clearchus the Macedonian, with whom were join'd above a Thousand Paphlagonian Horse. The Lest Wing was commanded by Arideus, consisting of Phrygians and Lydians, and in this were about a Thousand Horse more. In the middle Battel was Cyrus himself, with a Guard for his Person consisting of the best Persian Soldiers and other Barbarians, to the number of Ten thousand Men; before whom march'd as a Vaunt-guard a Thousand Horse gallantly accoutred, with Grecian Swords and Coats of Mail. On the other side, Artaxerxes plac'd a great number of hook'd Chariots in front of his whole Army, and committing the two Wings to the Command of Persian Officers, he himself remain'd with the Main Body, guarded with no less then Fifty thousand choice Men.
When the Armies came within Three Furlongs one of another, the Grecians sang the Pean, and then silently led the Van; and as soon as they came within the Cast of a Dart they ran in upon the Enemy with great Fury; for so Clearchus had ordered them, conceiving, that if they fought at a great Distance, their whole Bodies would be Marks for their Enemies, during all the time of the Fight; whereas if they engag'd close at Hand, they would be less subject to the Darts and Arrows of the Persians. As soon as the Main Body with Cyrus came up to the King's, a Shower of Darts and Arrows like a Tempest, fell upon them, as great as can be imagin'd might be discharg'd by a Body of Fifty thousand Men. But after they had fought a while with their Darts at a distance, at length they fell to it hand to hand. The Lacedaemonians and Mercenaries at the first Charge routed that Part of the Army that oppos'd them, far exceeding the Barbarians both in dexterity of Fight and the resplendant brightness of their Arms. For all the Barbarians were but lightly arm'd, and many of the Regiments were of the meanest Soldiers, and the greatest part but raw and unexpert in War. The Grecians on the contrary, by so long and continual exercise of their Arms in the late Peloponnesian War, were grown very skilful and excellent Soldiers; so that they put their Adversaries presently to flight, and made a great slaughter of the Barbarians. It so happen'd that both the Generals (who were contending for the Kingdom) being in the main Battel on either side, and weighing how fatal the issue would be, made one against the other, purposing to decide the Controversie by their own hands; and Destiny seem'd now to engage these two Brothers in a Duel, as if it had been in imitation of that ancient and stout Combat between Eteocles and Polynices, so memoriz'd by Poets in their Tragedies. Here Cyrus made the Onset, and at a distance threw his Javelin with all his force at the King, and brought him down to the Ground, who was presently taken up as dead, and carry'd out of the Fight by them that were about him. Upon this Tissaphernes, a Noble Persian, steps into the King's place, encourages the Soldiers and sights valiantly himself; endeavouring to revenge the suppos'd Death of the King, flew about into every Place with the choicest of the Troops, and made a dreadful Slaughter where-ever he came, insomuch as his Heat and extraordinary Courage was taken notice of by them that were at a great distance.
Cyrus likewise lifted up with the Success of his Arms, siercely rushes into the midst of the Battel, and signaliz'd his Courage with the slaughter of many of his Enemies. But
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Bible Study The King James Bible (kjv), World English Bible (web) and Bible in Basic English (bbe) are all examples of public domain books. The King James Bible (kjv) online uses the content from these books and open source software to enhance Bible study capabilities. The site includes the verse of the day, search tools, christian literature and links to related content. It demonstrates the use of open source to create a valuable service.